ABSTRACT
“Diplomacy is the art and praxis of negotiating between authorised representatives of different groups or nations (diplomats). The concept generally relates to international diplomacy, i.e. fostering cross-national or supra-national relationships by discussing matters such as the securing of peace, culture, the economy, trade and conflict” (de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplomatie; similar in Ostrower 1965: 99–107). In this sense, diplomacy is evidently an international action field par excellence, in which language choice impacts on the global position of languages. This involves the legal status of languages as well as their function, language choice in international organisations and diplomatic contacts, especially between nations with different official languages and native languages. These factors therefore offer valid indicators for the position of languages in the action field of diplomacy.
